


Dear Diary

by sinushca



Category: Batman (Comics), DCU
Genre: Action/Adventure, Drama, F/M, Humor, Romance, Suspense
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-25
Updated: 2017-05-25
Packaged: 2018-11-04 21:18:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,611
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10999176
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sinushca/pseuds/sinushca
Summary: A life as a student was boring. It lacked of excitement, of changes and simply life itself. From university to home, home to university. Sera wanted a change and started it by going to the rooftop to feel the fresh cold air. However, this change was something out of her league, just by being a witness of a secret conversation."Dick?"





	1. Chapter 1

Once again was the feeling of just leaving this place and going out, to live and experience something new, something one haven't experienced before. It was Sera, who stood in front of the door, her hand almost touching the knob as she sweated sweat of anxiety.

_Come on, girl! You can do it! What if it's dark outside and dangerous? Nothing will happen to you. All of it is movie. Besides don't you want movies to happen in your life, too?_

A constant battle between her pro and contra sides. What she really wanted was to do something new, something out of her own character. Her hand was shaking. It was freaking past midnight and all kind of danger laid in the dark at this hour. Someone who never left the house after midnight could never know what the real world was like. Despite the fact that media showed all kind of crimes which involved around these actual times but she was trying to be positive and optimistic. Just to add that she was also a bit – scratch that – she was super naïve when it was about the outside world since she lived most of her live indoor.

She took a breathy breath.

"Alright, I'm going to do this." Her hand, still shaking, but reached out for the door knob and opened the door in one go. Just as fast as a refreshing wind caressed her face, the panicky woman closed the door just as fast. No, she was not ready yet. This was something big in her life and it would definitely be worth an entry in her diary, but firstly, Sera sure needed to live that night to write anything worth down to begin with. Oh, how hard this decision was and what kind of peek it was in the Sera-Indoor-Woman life.

"Okay, but this time." Gathering all her strength and motivation together, she opened the door again and stepped out of her house like a big girl she was; 20 years old if it wasn't mentioned yet.

Finally convinced that this wouldn't be her last day but just the beginning, her hand reached out and opened the door. She would do this. Yes, she so would. One foot, next foot. This was life outside her apartment, just one step from her door. Alright, this was the start of her adventure but, we don't want to rush it. Sera took out her phone from her pocket, filming the first minutes outside her apartment at past midnight.

"Hello, lovely people. This's Sera here and I want you to keep me company today night and witness the exciting adventure with me." While her heart told her to go outside, see the streets at night, her heart told her to go to the rooftop instead. One step after a time, right?

As if on a mystery trip or perhaps even in a show, Sera held up her phone next to her head as she walked up to the rooftop in careful steps. It was late in the night and she don't wanted to disturb the neighbours. Luckily she lived in the highest floor and had a few more stairs to take until she reached her heart-flattering, first goal. Right at the moment she inhaled fresh air as she entered the rooftop, she beamed brightly at no-one but herself as she finally was outside.

"So, this is what the outside world looks like, people. I bet you haven't seen night like this before as well. I'm not the only one, right?"

But suddenly Sera heard a voice; a voice of a man.

"Now... I think, it's show time," she said, but inwardly the curious woman got scared down to her bones and would love to just run back to her home again but something held her back.

"Dick."

 _Whoa, there! What did he just say?_ Clearly freaked out of what she just heard, the woman tip-toed even slower toward the voice, not sure what was ahead of her. Her mind played up ideas which made no sense and then it made sense after all. What if there was a pairing making out in the night and she was here to spy on them? Sera considered stopping but this was part of her adventure and diary entry so there was no-way where she would stop just right there. Perfectly hidden behind a water tank, her instincts lured her toward the voice but kept herself in the dark as much as possible. Only to another tank she managed to sneaked closer which was also as far as Sera could go.

"I'm not looking, really. If it's about that I will cut it out immediately." She held her phone out enough to film the direction from which she heard the voice, luckily there was enough tank around the exit but nothing further away of the building, like this she could hide perfectly. Pressing her index finger and thumb on her screen, she zoomed as close as her phone's capacity allowed. Her phone was not the best and the newest one, but she made sure before she planned the midnight trip to get an extra feature for night filming. Though who thought of the quality? Sera could barely make out any shades and frames.

"How are your wounds?" The voice asked but from her phone she could barely make up one shadow. A tiny shadow. "It was a hard fight but we still haven't caught Joker yet. Stay alert."

 _Joker?_ That _Joker?_ Her eyes darted closer to her phone and past the tank as if to see anything, her suggestive ideas already forgotten since that idea went right down the toilet. She listened more intently to the ongoing conversation.

"I know, but my mask got damaged and my wounds are too deep. I can't return to the base yet," the shadow said, his tense tone revealing the intensiveness of his wounds.

 _Mask?_ Excitement filled her veins and Sera got easily careless and stupidly leant against the tank to eavesdrop more of the conversation as to see some of the mysterious man's face but instead, her head banged against the hard metal and caused enough noise for the mysterious man to notice.

"Who's there?" He called out dangerously.

"Oh, crap!" Her fear and surprise gave her away, pulling away her phone into her pocket as fast as she could. Luckily she loved wearing men clothes which sat overly large at her body, which concealed her real figure. As soon as she pulled her hoody over her head, Sera dashed toward the exit.

"What happened?"

"There was someone and I think he recorded my face, too. I'll call back. Dammit," he cursed, turning off the call from his watch and dashing after the woman hurriedly.

Breathless she hid behind the exit door as she pressed her back against the wall, wishing she could be one with it. How fortunate that a had a ball in her pocket; a pokeball she bought herself to dwell into nostalgia whenever she felt like it but this ball and her past should be her hero. Throwing the pokeball down the stairs, Sera kept begging inwardly for him to fall into her childish trick. I hope it works. I hope it works. I hope it works. It rolled down further and further, causing enough noise for someone in rush to misinterpreted as equally rushed footsteps; it was all she could come up to escape this horror movie and never show her face to this drastic and dangerous world. She wondered; was only Gotham City this dangerous at nights? His steps felt like an earthquake under her feet and her heart almost fought hard to leave her rip cage. He stood next to her, the thin door keeping her existence in the dark. Sera squeezed her eyes together and stopped her breathing, already fearing that her loud heartbeat would give her away.

An incoherent word slipped past his lips before he immerged down the stairs in attempt to catch the woman, who was behind the door still, waiting for the right time to get out of her hideout and rush back into her apartment. His footsteps got lower and lower and lower.

 _Now!_ Carefully tip-toeing back into the corridor, she grasped for the key for dear life as she took care not to make any sounds with her trembling hands. Sera kept telling herself to breath normally and not to panic, but her breath came out shorter and shorter as tension steadily grew.

 _Alright, now…_ She slid the key into the hole just in time and threw herself into her home as fast as possible and shut, carefully again since this wasn't the end yet, the door behind her without making a sound.

For a long moment she stood there with hands on knob and key, waiting for something. Something that told her everything was over and possibly just a dream. Her excitement must have played some tolls on her and now she started to hallucinate about action and excitement. Though finally she knew, this wasn't something she wanted and now she even appreciated her boring life. Yes, this was something meant to happen so nothing like this could ever happen again. She exhaled deeply and it felt like she exhaled all the tension out as well.

"…I need food. Thanks to all this running and hiding I got hungry again," Sera said, holding her grumbling stomach as she took her shoes off and walked back to the living room first, throwing off her jacket on the sofa before going to the kitchen and search for something edible.

* * *

 

Sunshine filled the apartment with life and ray just what the groggy woman needed after the ordeal of last night. Though the night felt more like a dream, something distant which had no relation to this world at all. Sera and adventure in real life? No way. Her mind couldn't progress intense thinking at the early morning, Instead she ditched any thoughts of last night and forced herself out of bed. Itchy hair, itchy body and empty stomach didn't add up well but showering was also out of question since Sera's motto was "energy for hygiene" and nothing mattered more. Not complicated and easily satisfied, she took out a bowl and ate last night spaghetti left; cold.

Sated and freshly showered the new day could start, Sera was even pumped out about her everyday life which began with university. Taking her bag over her shoulder, her phone from the charger and her sketchbook along, it was time to leave the house or she would be late for the bus. Even if this everyday bus ride took a whole hour.

The campus was full with all kind of students in groups or who preferred to be alone like her. She enjoyed watching the different people here and sometimes even took her sketchbook out and draw the one who left a strong impression on her. This time she didn't feel like drawing outside but just went straight to the classroom.

_I could draw there, too. Perhaps write in my diary, who knows._

Her classroom was already full which was surprising when the weather was warm and sunny outside. However Sera was forced to take a seat in the front rows and planted herself close to the door. It was already crowded enough and being right in the middle made her feel compressed.

"Hi."

A voice interrupted her and she turned around to see whom the voice belonged to; her heart stopped beating for a split second as she saw the person, a very attractive and handsome man. He had black, full hair and a board build, even with the clothes he wore one knew that this man had defined muscles. She blinked, confused at the same time.

 _Did he say it to me?_ "...Hi."

"I'm new here and changed courses. I saw you alone here and thought you might help me? By the way, my name's Richard Dick Grayson. Nice to meet you," he said, smiling at her and holding out a hand.

_...Dick?_

"Is something the matter?" Dick asked her as there was no answer from the woman's side.

"Eh, no!" She laughed it off; certainly not the time to think about last time. "I'm Sera Masters. Nice to meet you, too. I'm glad to be of help, if you have any questions, don't mind asking me."

"Sure."

Just when Sera opened her mouth to say something again the professor came in, placing his heavy books on the table with a loud thud as to awaken the attention of the students in the room. Disregarding it for later, she shrugged her question off and turned around, looking at the teacher attentively. Professor Watson was the best and most strictest in the university but one who past his seminars would have a great chance to be a journalist. He taught the best way to express himself in words and point out the most important and interesting part in stories. First of all, to gain the readers attention. Once Sera read an article in a magazine and was impressed at how great the story delivered it to the readers. With growing interest she looked into the backgrounds of authors and found one point that all the other authors Sera liked had in common, the University of Gotham city. Everyone started here. As Sera got the chance to interview one of her favourite authors, the answer was clear. Professor Watson was the one who taught them of everything essential in writing articles, but all began by gathering the right amount of information.

She started writing fanfictions about her favourite characters in some fandom she used to be but soon left the ideas of writing a roman fanfiction and moved on to design her diary entries. What annoyed her the most was how colourful their life was but hers was grey and dark. Last night was the first attempt to make it colourful but instead a rainbow hit her face as hard as she imagined and kicked her out of her fantasies. Now she was happy about her grey and dark life.

"Alright, this time I want you to work with your partner. Exchange information and write one article together. It's not always about writing alone but sometimes in a team, too. Being reflexive is a must. Deadline is the end of the week," Professor Watson said, his words emphasising the last words with dead seriousness.

"One minute too late and I won't accept your article. You will fail this seminar if I either don't get the article on time or if it doesn't meet my expectations." Collecting his books and paperwork together and carrying it with one hand at his side, he nodded at his students. "Have a nice day," and left the classroom.

All students started to groan in unison but only Dick seemed to smile at the perplexed woman next to him, who seemed to have overheard the whole announcement due to her deep thinking.

"What?"

"Seems like I'm in your care now," he said, holding his hand out to her cheerfully which Sera took in confusingly. "We'll have to see each other more often from today onwards."

"Yeah, it seems so." Mentally slapping herself across the face, she cursed her stupid thoughts and mind for thinking too much and having missed Professor Watson's lesson, too. She sighed. Most of all she regretted sitting so close to the exit and shunned herself from the other students which she had been together with two years already. Instead this new man – handsome at that – sat next to her and was now her partner. She was awkward around new people and especially with handsome people. How was she supposed to act? Ah, she could smack her head against the wall. This was no good at all.

_Better to get over this fast and smoothly..._

"What about we start at your place? We could collect some information on the internet and find ideas about an article," Dick suggested.

Sera's eyes shot wide open.

"What? No! ...Oh, ehm, I mean..."

"Sorry," he chuckled a little, his hand massaging his neck sheepishly while his face showed the discomfort her rejection. "I recently moved close to the university so it's a mess there and I don't have WiFi at home yet. I didn't mean to-"

 _Please, just let me drop dead to the ground._ "No, I'm sorry," Sera said, blushing at her own stupidity and embarrassment. This was why she didn't like to be with others, she wasn't used to others and especially at her home. She was also very old-fashioned. A guy and a woman alone in a woman's apartment in top of that? Thoughts like this made her blush hard while it was normal for others.

"It's really dirty at my place and I got embarrassed at the idea you might see all this. I also recently moved in and have to sort a lot of things at home. How about the library though? It's luckily not full around here since the students prefer cafés over it."

He was silent for a moment and it made Sera fidget and anxious as it never happened in her life before. What was going on? She was sweating.

"Sounds good."

A relieved breath left her lips and she smiled.

"Alright, let's meet at 3?"

"Sure."

* * *

 

 _Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid._ Sera repeated in her mind as she leant against the wall, with each word her head hit the wall. Since the library was connected to the university, she already took a place at her favourite department – horror/thriller. It was located at the farther end of the library. She sighed. "Nothing can get worse than this, right?" At this she started to chuckle a little; just like an old cliché. Sulking didn't help so the devoted woman went to her favourite book and took one of them out – The Amityville Horror – and it was not just because Ryan Reynolds played the psycho. Suddenly a shadow grew over her and engulfed her body, darkening her view at the book.

"Tragic, isn't it? While we read it as fiction in a book, a real family had suffered this a long time ago."

Her eyes widened and she almost jumped out of her skin. Turning around briskly, Sera saw that the person was none other but her handsome partner. She sighed and reflexively hit his chest though with a minimal touch against his shirt.

"You scared me, geez..." While she expected him to move away or laugh it off, he stood in the same position, right in front of her and it was closer than her personal space allowed it to. Her inward alarm rung. Perhaps she should move away instead. As she moved to the right his arm blocked her path. She turned around to look at him but his eyes were fixed at hers intently; Sera blushed instantly.

"You know," he said, closing the gap of their bodies gradually which made the woman fidget nervously again. "while everyone hate open endings, I kind of like that. It leaves enough room for imagination, don't you agree?" He said over her ear, his warm breath tickling her ear. Her breath got stuck in her lungs and she flushed dramatically. Just when she couldn't take it anymore and wanted to push the man away, he stepped away and smiled at her warmly, in his hand a book which he held up to his face. He looked into a few pages.

"Stephen King's stories usually has open endings. Ever read his books?" With a loud clap the shut the book again, his eyes locked with her confused one.

"Eh, no. But my sister does," she answered; dumbfounded.

"Anyway, let's start with our research." He put the book back into the shelf and walked over to the table, pushing the seat back and sitting down comfortably.

Sera just watched him blankly, her mind running wild as she tried to progress the whole scenario in her head but there was one question that bugged her.

"How did you find me?"

"I asked the supervisor if she saw you and she showed me the way."

But there had been no supervisor when she came in and it was empty. It had been only her with a shield on the board that the supervisor would soon be back again; Sera assumed she must make a break since the library was empty. However the woman quickly put the thought aside and shrugged it off. The supervisor might still have come back while Sera wasn't looking.

"I see," she said, smiling at him. The book in her hand was placed back into the shelf, too, before she sat down across of him.

"Any idea what we could write about?"

"How about the night life on the streets? Since Gotham City has a name about the night life here, we could write an article about the danger and alarm them. Perhaps even give suggestions of how to take care of certain situations. Interview and thesis could enhance our argumentation. What do you think?"

At first Sera said nothing but stare at her partner incredulously. Everything seemed strange ever since she that night. While she closed the topic completely, someone else was forcing her to open it again. She didn't want to see the night life again, not after she was chased after like this.

"Sounds interesting!" She forced a laugh, trying the hide the tension she was actually feeling. "We could also look fo-"

"So it's a yes, then," he cut her off brutally.

"Eh, yeah, well... You see-"

"Good. We'll meet tonight again at 10. Here's my number. You can text me your address. I'll pick you up," he winked at her, sliding a card with his number at her before he stood up.

"Eh, but-"

"See you later." He waved and walked away toward the exit, leaving a terribly confused Sera behind.

"What the hell? He didn't even listen to me..."

Utterly shocked at how she was dismissed openly right at her face while he basically forced his ideas at her. Who was he even? A hot guy she met a few hours for the first time; Richard Dick Grayson. She blinked. Something rung at her head when she said his name but why? Sera let out a scream of frustration and ruffled her head desperately. Yesterday afternoon she would have cried of happiness now she shed tears of sheer disaster. But will a Sera stop here?

"No!" She said, standing up abruptly and kicking her chair back forcefully.

"It won't stop here." Something bugged her but again she just couldn't put it into words and dwelt into her thoughts.

"Richard... Dick... Grayson..." She paused. "...Dick." Suddenly her eyes shot wide open. Wasn't this the name she heard when she was on the rooftop?

"No way," she laughed and waved it off. It would be too much of a coincidence and she wasn't some kind of heroine in a movie. Beside it would open to many questions which didn't make any sense. Why was he on the rooftop? Was he hiding something and if so, why would he chase her like some murderer after its prey? Sera shook her head.

"No way," she repeated again. Throwing her bag over her shoulder, she corrected the chairs again before she left the library. Her eyes fell onto the desk of the supervisor. There was a note "I will be back soon. By any questions, please come back later" and this sent a shiver down her back as she remembered his words.

Just who on earth was this Richard Dick Grayson?

* * *

 

Darkness replaced the light and the sun hid behind the illuminating moon which provide the sky with light as much as it could. For Sera the moon was beautiful but weak against the swallowing darkness. She pressed her hand against the window and looked down. It was already past 10:00 PM and he was still not here.

"Perhaps he couldn't find the address?" She messaged him her address in the late afternoon as he asked her to – made her to – but Sera started to worry. It was past 15 minutes and, honestly, she was getting a bit nervous. Taking her phone out, to make sure she texted the right address, she looked at the sent text again. Everything was right, so why wasn't he there yet? She opened the window completely and bent forward in hope she saw him somewhere close but nothing. It was just darkness and silence that greeted her. Frosty wind bit at her and she shivered. Closing the window again, she looked at her phone again and suddenly it started to ring.

"Holy-!" It startled her, but she answered it as fast as she could.

"Hello?"

"Sorry, it's me. I got lost and just found the right street. I'll wait here for you."

"Alright, I'll be down in a minute," she said, ending the call by pressing on the red phone sign on her screen. Sera narrowed her eyes at the phone in confusion and then looked at the window. Hadn't she just looked out of the window? She must have seen him coming if he came down the street, even his car, but there was nothing. Then how?

"I'm thinking too much into this," she said, shaking her head. Gathering her bag from the couch she walked straight to her shoes, putting them on before she walked out of the apartment. As she closed the door, her eyes spied to the corridor where she had hid herself. A strange and dangerous night.

"Sorry again," Dick said as he saw her but Sera shook her head, smiling at him.

"No problem at all. It can get complicated finding your way here, especially if it's your first time since we have so many allies here."

"I noticed. It seems deserted but you might never know whom you find in the night, right?"

"So, true. It can be exciting and dangerous at the same time."

"True."

"So, where do you think we should head to first?"

"Hmm, how about watching someone from the rooftop?" He asked and strangely his eyes were fixed at hers which made her want to step back instantly as if caught in a crime, yet she rose an eyebrow at him.

"The rooftop?"

"Yes, we could see who lurks in the dark alleys from up there. It not always easy to find something by just walking around the streets, don't you agree? Sometimes you just wait and listen."

Again, he made her feel trapped and by some mysterious way Sera felt she like running away; as if her body and mind told her to run.

"It's true, perhaps something interesting appears in front of us of which we could our researches about."

"Right, just what I said," he said. His chin nodded at her block. "How about we start here and start watching from your rooftop. You wouldn't have to walk around much from your apartment, too."

"Alright." Somehow her heart beat faster and she couldn't explain the tension she felt. Taking out her key from her pocket, she opened the door and Dick held the door for her to let her enter first; seemingly the nice gentlemen and yet this thought didn't calm her a bit. Inside the elevator none of them shared a word but the tension started to build up inside her body. It wasn't getting any better. As they reached the highest floor and with that her floor, too, Dick suddenly asked.

"And you live here somewhere?"

"Yes, actually on this floor," she answered but not in details. She hid the fact that she lived two doors ahead on the left side. If it wasn't for the strange tension she would have told him her exact home but she felt like keeping it for herself and with this, safe.

"We have to go up here now," she continued, guiding her partner to the rooftop as they walked a few stairs further up. The wind caressed her heated skin, the moment where she noticed she was actually sweating a lot, as she opened the door and stepped out into the open air again.

"Kinda left behind, don't you agree?"

"Yes, I had the feeling, too."

Sera looked up at him but stayed quite, instead she walked ahead and took on with her guarding role. Seeing the water tank reminded her of the fear she felt at that night and it made her uncomfortable, yet her feet let her to the exact tank she was hiding when she eavesdropped.

"From here you can't really see anything. You want to know what goes down there, right?" Dick whispered from behind, causing Sera to feel every single hair on her body as she jumped toward the tank and pressed herself against it. Quickly she turned around and wanted to tell him off, since it was the second time to scare her like this, but when she saw his face, her body temperature dropped significantly.

"I have another idea," he suddenly talked again, inching closer and pressing both hands at each side of Sera. He caged her. "

"How about we write an article for little girls who underestimate the night life and think everything's a game. Who might hide and play detectives? Might that not be a good idea?"

"I- I don't understand what you mean," Sera stuttered, fear overcoming her more and more. It was suffocating.

"Imagine, what if a girl comes out at night and sees something she shouldn't see? Or what if this girl acts innocent but was actually a spy? What if she works for someone and gets herself in danger? What if she has nothing to do with anything but now was in a mess she would never get out again?" His board build covered all of her figure and darkened her vision. Only the outline of him was visible for the panicky woman and his intimidating eyes.

"I-... You know I don't feel well. I think I ate something bad and need to see a toilet right this moment so," she excused herself weakly, the panicky clearly audible in her tone but Dick let her go since he didn't move a muscle when she ducked his arm and ran back into the building and right straight into her home. She breathed heavily as she slid down the door and sat on the ground once she entered the apartment and locked the door as much as possible.

"Just what-..." She froze, the blood in her veins cold as ice. There it was, the only thing that made her flee from the ordeal; the pokeball. Her body didn't work as she wanted it to and she had to muster all the strength in her veins to make her stand on her feet. Limply she walked toward the table where the pokeball was.

Something was writing on it and she wished all this was just a bad dream and she would soon wake up.

"I found you."


	2. Chapter 2

In the morning Sera felt like a walking dead, even though she slept well for a few hours in the early hours she did nothing but think about the occasions of last night. One thing was for sure that Dick guy from the rooftop was the same Dick in the university and he has a secret which should be kept unknown. She understood it so far, but why was he after her? Until now she didn't even know it was him since it was too dark to make out his face. Perhaps he just wanted to scare her and that was all?

Anyway the way to the university was as normal as it should always was and luckily Professor Watson's next seminar was in two days so Sera would have to see Dick for a time being. As long as he wouldn't contact her, she wouldn't as well, even if they had to work together with him. She would need to make something for Professor Watson or work on the article alone and just hand it in as if both wrote it.

"Yup, that should do it."

"What should?"

Sera jumped out of her skin at the sound of the voice who belonged to none other than her partner, Dick. She clutched at her heart.

"Hi," he said, smiling at her which returned in a tense way.

"Hi..."

"Are you feeling better today?" Both of them stopped to talk, more likely Sera had to stop, and hoped he would leave soon. Looking past of him she noticed that a few friends waited for him. How wonderful.

"Eh, yes. I'm feeling much better today. Thank you," she said. "It seems like your friends are waiting. You shouldn't let them wait any longer."

"That's okay. Just wanted to say that I'll drop by in the evening again. We can discuss about anything, then. Bye."

Unbelievably she watched him walk back to his friends as he waved at her goodbye. Again he didn't listen to her and, heck, would she be there at time. At first she was getting scared and uncomfortable but it started to piss her off and this meant stubbornness. Correcting her bag on her shoulders, she walked the other way around and sat down on grass as she usually did when she had time; time for inspiration. She made herself comfortable on the fresh green and took her sketchbook out along with a pencil. As she watched the students going by her mind trailed back to the happenings of the past days. Just sitting there and doing nothing, she gazed at the sketchbook silently. By some mysterious ways Dick came into her mind again. Strange enough her finger worked on its own and later on Sera was confused to see him on her sketchbook.

"This is getting over my head already," she said, shaking her head whilst she put her sketchbook back into bag again and stood up. As she pat herself clean, Sera noticed how long she had been sitting here. Almost two hours and she didn't even notice. It was already late in the afternoon, going home made more sense but first she would visit Gundalf again, her favourite comic store. She had still a lot of comic issues to buy, especially those from Deadpool and Spiderman. How she loved her superheroes.

Time after time and Sera was still in her own world, consumed from Deadpool and Spiderman, that she hadn't noticed the streets darkening. She always tried to be at home before it got dark, since Gotham City had its unique reputation. It was dangerous and always a challenge for normal citizen, especially for women.

"This one, please," she said, smiling at the cashier but her eyes were on the street. Somehow it looked darker than ever? She put the money on the table.

"Thanks. Be careful when you get home, Sera, and have fun reading."

"Will you miss me when I don't come back anymore?" She whined at the cashier, Jack was his name. He laughed but nodded at her anyway.

"Yes, I will. Now get your ass home and take care. Nothing bad will happen, so don't you worry."

"That's what you say. It's me who has to get past these allies and streets."

"Goodbye."

She made a face at him and turned around with a scoff, but at the door she turned around and smiled at the rude but kind friend she could make here, waving at him goodbye.

"Tell me when you have the issues I want, alright?"

"You can count on me."

The street lights seemed like small fireflies which illuminated the sides of the streets just barely, more like a decorated for the eye Sera thought. How could this make someone feel safer and how was she able to see the buildings when she had to turn into an alley soon. Somehow it felt more different when it was in daylight. She was getting disorientated.

_Might as well make this my new adventure show..._ Sera took out her phone and turned her light from the camera on perfectly filming while she turned into an alley she thought it would lead her home, like usually when she crossed this alley. But somehow it was longer and nearer. Was she even right? Suddenly a crack resounded from farther away as she walked down the alley. Her heart beat faster.

"Must have been a rat," she chuckled but the sounds came out as short breaths. Even Sera wasn't sure if it was a rat but believed it was one. Just when she was about to reach the end of the alley, there were voices she could make out the nearer her feet led her.

"Shut up! Shut up! Shut UP!" A voice cried out, a sickening sound accompanying the scream.

Instantly she stopped walking since the voices became more clearer and louder. She noticed it must have been just around the corner and if she took another step, her life would be in danger. But this might also be a story she could write about. Conflicted about life and death, she instinctively pressed her back against the wall and held her phone at the corner just enough to film the scenario.

"I hate those who don't obey me," he said with a sing-sung voice, causing another sickening noise from the other person, who must be beaten brutally by the talker. "And I don't tolerate boredom, so DIE!" The man laughed maniacally and it resounded in the dull alleys, giving it a creepy touch which made her a shiver ran down her spine.

Suddenly he stopped laughing and everything was still. Only Sera's heartbeat rung on her ears and it made her anxious.

"Oh, my. Who's the rude little spy around the corner putting a spotlight right at the murder scene?" The voice whispered close to her intimidatingly. Everything froze before Sera's eyes even her breath got stuck on her lungs. She forgot to turn the light off on her phone.

"Just who is it, hm? Should I look, eh? Should I?" He asked, chuckling joyously and seemingly excited at the change of scenario.

Just when his steps got nearer and nearer a shadow engulfed her and swallowed her whole figure. Wide eyes looked at a tall man clad in black and his eyes were covered by a mask. With all the anxiety and terror she felt at the moment, her mind stopped progressing any further record of information.

"Stupid woman," was all the tall shadow man said and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling them off from the ground in rapid speed as he activated his gauntlets and shot a string at a far away place, just before the intimidating man stepped around the corner.

"Two birds I let escape," he said, acting genuinely sad, a crowbar in his hand which he tapped into his palm synchronously. "But not next time," he promised, his voice dropping significantly. Even with a decent distance the terrified woman could ear it, his voice heavy in the dull night. Suddenly the man in black came to halt and let go of Sera, who stumbled back, her head a mess inside.

"I told you to wait at home!" He yelled at her but Sera just looked at him pensively. This was getting over her head.

"What?"

"Haven't you learnt from that night already how dangerous it is to lure around? What are you – stupid? I can't believe it."

His rampage didn't help at all and added more question marks on her face and head. Who was this man and why was he yelling at her?

"But who...?"

"What I had been there a second later? He's not someone you can joke around even if his name is the Joker." Bad pun; Sera noted in her head. Definitely a bad, bad pun. Her eyes observed the nagging man in front of her and all of a sudden everything made sense. She walked up at him while he was talking, catching him off-guard as she reached to his mask and took it off of his face. Of course, why hadn't she notice it any sooner.

"Dick."

He got startled and took the mask from her again, correcting it on his face again, his eyes narrowed at her. "As if you didn't know. Want the put on a microphone and announce it to the whole neighbourhood. Perhaps they want to hear it, too."

"I didn't."

"What?"

"I didn't know."

"Quit joking already, I'm not in the mood to joke around here. You filmed me when we were on the rooftop, when I took my mask off and got careless, remember?"

"I didn't saw your face nor did I know it was you. My phone couldn't make out the face in the night and you were too far away for me to make out your face."

"I-... ehm... You..."

She smirked mischievously at him, wiggling her eyebrow. How amusing. "Busted."

* * *

A grumbling Dick securely brought the cheerful woman back to her apartment and dumped her down on the sofa, gently. The apartment looked much smaller with him in here Sera thought. A two-room apartment was big and enough for her but now it looked kind of small. She wasn't used to visitation. He ripped his mask off in frustration and sat down next to her, sighing. "I can't believe I was tricked by a girl."

"A woman, excuse you. I'm 20."

"A 20-years old girl, I can't believe it," he said, feeling bitter about his own revelation he caused himself. He ran a hand through his hair. "Batman will get mad at me. That's for sure."

"No. Way," she said. Dick narrowed his eyes at her, not getting what she was so exciting about. She knew so little.

"So you work together with the famous superhero ever? What's your superhero name?"

"Nightwing," he said, the bitter feeling just deepening. After having fought so long beside Batman and he wasn't even taken note of. He sighed; he felt childish for even thinking this.

"Give me your phone."

"Wait, why?" Sera asked, it was part of her and her private life. It felt like he asked for her clothing size.

"Just give it to me."

"How rude, no! This is getting too much with you," she said, standing up in the heat of thrill. "You didn't even let me say something the last times and now you want me to comply? Explain yourself first."

"...Alright, I see your point. I'm sorry. Everything was from the beginning," he said, including his behaviour and mannerism toward her. It was not him to treat a woman like this. "Can I see the video you made on the rooftop and the one you just made?"

Sera's heart raced at the genuine tone and earnestness he showed her openly. For a moment she crossed her arms and watched him silently as in observing, he on the other hand, just waited patiently.

"Fine, apology accepted. And yes, you can see the records even have the files, if that's what you want."

"That's exactly what I was trying to get at. Thanks," he said, smiling at her for the first time the past hour. Damn him for being this charming and attractive. She took her phone out and opened the file with the videos she recorded. "Here," she said, handing her phone over to him.

"Nice." Silently he watched the video and the first seconds were her and the announcement she made in the beginning, he couldn't help but chuckle. Oh God, how could she have forgotten the first seconds of the video.

"W-wait, don't look at it! Let me play forward first, give it back," Sera stuttered, her face already a shade of bright pink. How embarrassing it was for her. She reached out her hand and tried to snatch the phone back but he simply blocked it by grabbing her wrist and keeping her at bay. His laughter only add more colour to her face and deepened the blush.

"Dick, please!"

"It's cute, don't worry."

No way, he said the words she hated the worst when she was clearly made an embarrassment of herself.

"So, that's you were doing. How pure," he teased her, a payback for the wiggle and smirk at him earlier. He smirked at her briefly before returning his attention back to the screen.

"Shut it!" She scowled at him but it caused another wave of laughter from his side. Her protest only made it worse, so she stopped and grumbled.

"See, it's over already. It's getting to the part I wanted to see. Thanks for the extra show," he said. She only rolled her eyes at him. _Just you wait..._

Dick watched the remaining seconds of the video in silence. (Once it got to the part he knew himself already, since both started the hide and run game, he sighed gravely. How could he have revealed his secret so openly? He should have looked more into the scene but he wasn't ready to take the risk. It could have been a spy and she still might be. He knew nothing about the woman.)

"You really haven't seen anything at all," he said, but for a fact she heard his name and that Joker was mentioned. If someone had put one and one together, someway or another there would a link bound to him. He deleted the video.

"I'm sorry, I brought you into something you won't be able to get out anymore. Not peacefully," he said, genuinely feeling sorry for her. He knew the best how hard life could be when it was full with responsibility and the constant weariness one need to have. The lack of the latter put him and her into this situation after all.

"Nah," she waved her hand at him, he underestimated her optimism despite the fear she felt, but this was leading to something more exciting and thrilling in her life. Superheroes? Heck, yes. She was in. Even if she wasn't one herself but being part such a life made her joyous. Not going out of the house anymore? She must have lost her mind for a second to even thought something like this. If she regretted this later, she didn't know but now was no turning back anymore. She was stuck in this together with him.

"I'm fine. Who would be suspicious of a normal student like me?"

Dick stood up and approached her, his board build swallowing her narrow one completely, despite her the height difference. With her 5'10 he was still taller than her and cast a shadow over her head, if he wanted to. The closeness between them was intimidating and his grieve expression made the joy die out immediately.

"You must be seriously stupid, right? This isn't a child's game," he said, still approaching her until she hit the wall, unable to move away. Sera opened her mouth to say something but he continued.

"While I scare you this much already, you can't imagine what the Joker is capable of. You have no idea what this man already did to so many others. Watch the video you made and then you'll get a small taste at his cruelty." He grabbed her hands and pinned them above her head as he leaned closer against her face.

"If you think this is so exciting and fun, how about you try getting rid of me? How naïve you are. You don't even know me and you still trust me enough to even let me in your house. What did you think that we're friends?" He scoffed. A knee forced her legs to part and he pressed it against her sensitive spot. Sera's world darkened and she shivered uncontrollably against his touch. Fear was she felt but it was wrath that overtopped the feeling, she glared at him and didn't bulge against his attempts. How dare he take this lightly?

"Do what you have to do. Will this teach me a lesson? No. It doesn't change the situation and I'm still stuck in it. What do you expect me to say or do? Cry? Beg for everything to return as it was? Nothing even began! I'm not this weak. I try to find the best way to adjust to this, alright? This is my way of keeping myself calm, look forward to the unknown future and you know what, you're a dick for treating me like this. You know fucking nothing about me!"

Both looked into their eyes stubbornly, none of them looking away even for a second. The tension was thick enough for a knife to cut through. It wasn't getting any better.

"Don't do anything lightly and think before you act. What you did today was foolish enough. You could've died today!"

"But did I? No!"

"Because I was there! Woman, you're not getting my point," he hissed at her, but then sighed and held her hands up, defeated. But the moment he let go of her hands, she punched him hard at his jaw and forced him backward to which he fell to the couch brutally. He held his jaw and cursed audibly, ready to teach her some lessons, but he stopped when he saw her. She placed a foot at the couch rest and pulled him toward her face by his collar.

"Don't underestimate me, mister. I might look weak and naïve to you but I know how to deal with shit, alright? I'm not dealing with any of this and if you treat me like this again, you will have to taste my fist."

"Perhaps you're handling this better than I thought," he suddenly smiled at her, which only startled the woman. "I expected you to cry and blame me, but when you shrugged it off so lightly, I thought you're a fool. Someone who always lived in a flower world while she knew nothing about the real world. I changed my mind about you and again, I'm sorry."

She scoffed at him and let his collar go, her glare still permanently directed at him. Her anger was still lingering, even though she understood his point of view, too. Not fully, but half of it.

"I'm scared, but I know better to whine about spilled milk. This much you should know about me."

"I got you," he smirked at her, seemingly pleased at her guts. "But if you should cry, I won't have shoulder for you."

"As if would want to cry on your shoulder."

"Don't ask when the time comes."

"It's nothing special."

"Ouch."

Both shared intense gazes but it was Dick who broke the eye-contact with a curt chuckle after a while as he stood up, grasping his mask from the table and adjusting it on his face.

"So we'll see each other more often from now on, right, partner?"

"It seems so."

One last glance cast at her, he walked toward the window and was about to jump out, when he suddenly stopped. "And before I forget. Remember I'm watching you. You know who I am but I don't know you. Until I know who's you are on, I will follow every step you do and the people you interact with," he said, a smile plastered on his face as he winked at her.

"I'm kind toward my enemies, too, don't worry."

Before Sera could say something in return, he jumped out of the window. She gasped and dashed to the window but there was only the moon greeting her. He was gone.


End file.
